The January transfer window have have only just closed, but Leeds United fans are already considering what business should be done at the end of the season, continuing to harbour ambitions of making a big return to the English Premier League.
Their season has gone off the rails in recent weeks, resulting in the sacking of Thomas Christiansen and appointment of Paul Heckingbottom.
Striker Pierre-Michel Lasogga is at the heart of recent transfer discussions between supporters, after his latest interview with German outlet Sport Bild.
On loan from German side Hamburg, Lasogga has had an up and down season at Elland Road, initially starting superbly and banging in the goals before injury hampered his progress.
He’s scored seven and assisted four goals in 18 Championship appearances, leading many fans to believe he has the quality to propel them back to the Premier League, if they can keep him fit.
Supporters are keen on signing him permanently if they can sort out the financial aspects of a potential deal, with many believing he’d have to take a massive pay cut.
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An international cap is a sacred thing. Short of winning silverware, representing your country is the highest achievement that a player can hope for. It’s a proud moment. And for too long we’ve allowed pride to get in the way of our decision-making.
When Wayne Rooney was substituted after an hour in England’s recent game against Denmark, he left a quiet game in which he earned his 89th cap, your typical international friendly that goes a long way to support the argument for irrelevance of such matches. And yet with his withdrawal, things began to get a lot more interesting.
The joint introduction of Adam Lallana and Danny Welbeck after 60 minutes changed the game. Now there was movement. With players running into space at speed, the chances England created increased exponentially, and we got the game’s only goal. Although football is often made out to be a very complicated game, it can be incredibly simple. And so it shouldn’t be surprising that when you’ve lots of fast players who don’t stop moving, the other team finds it very difficult to defend.
The consequences of such a drastic change in fortunes must be questioned. Yes it was only 30 minutes of football. And yes it was a friendly against Denmark. But so clear was the change in England’s forward play that it would be idiotic not to seriously consider what this means.
The simplest thing to deduce from the game would be England played better without Wayne Rooney. This is hard conclusion to make sense of as Rooney is also England’s best footballer. However, England have regularly not played well with Wayne Rooney in the team, so there is no reason to expect his talent alone is enough to insure the team performs. And if this alternative combination of youth and pace proves to be more effective, there are no reasons other than normative ones for choosing the striker at the World Cup.
For a long time in England, there has been too high a value assigned quality when choosing the national team. Whilst this is an undeniably important aspect, emphasizing any one factor too much tends to have a detrimental affect on the thing as a whole. By concentrating too much on this single attribute, the values of form and effectiveness have gone underappreciated.
For instance, the selection of Emile Heskey was regularly balked at by fans and pundits because he was said to be ‘not good enough’ to play for England. Not good enough for whom? Heskey was certainly good enough to cause trouble for the opposition defence and tended to have a greater affect on games than the more technically gifted strikers whose inclusion people called for.
It would seem that Heskey was not good enough for them. This relative preference for quality above all else appears to be borne out of some sort of insecurity. The fear is that if we send players who are technically poor and lose, we will look inferior. Where as if we play our technically best players and still lose, there will be somehow less shame attached to it. In reality, the really shameful thing is to pick a team that has less of a chance of winning than you could have done out of fear.
This fear seems to be the motivation behind those saying ‘you can’t not pick Wayne Rooney’. Well why can’t you? Yes, he may be a better footballer than Raheem Sterling, but if the team has a better chance of winning with Sterling, or Lallana, or Oxlade-Chamberlain or even Danny Welbeck, then they should be on the pitch instead of Rooney.
It’s not stupid to leave Rooney out if you’ve got good reason to. And on the basis of last Wednesday there may be just such a reason. What is stupid is to pick the striker ahead of more effective alternatives in nothing other than hope.
Unless Roy Hodgson has good reason for believing the temperamental forward will be more effective than his contemporaries, then he should go with the team that gives England the best chance of winning. Anything else would be idiotic. Anything else is cowardice.
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Tottenham defender Benoit Assou-Ekotto is set to return to training for his side this week, after it was deemed that he does not require surgery, The Sun claim.
The Cameroon international has become a mainstay at left-back for the north London side, but has been missing in action for the last six weeks due to a knee injury.
The African full-back was thought to be ready to go under the knife, with an operation needed to clear out fragments of bone that were giving him discomfort.
However, specialists have deemed that rest would be sufficient for Assou-Ekotto to recuperate, with the problem now hopefully behind him.
Assou-Ekotto will return to action this week at White Hart Lane, and may even be in the running for inclusion in the side’s next game against Chelsea on Saturday.
Spurs have been forced to use Jan Vertonghen at left-back, whilst Steven Caulker has slotted into the centre of the team’s defence.
The return of Assou-Ekotto to full fitness will be a boost for Andre Villas-Boas, and allow him to reinstate Vertonghen to his preferred position of centre-half.
Assou-Ekotto was one of the first names on the team sheet in Harry Redknapp’s tenure, and has proved himself as one of the most consistent performers in his position in the division.
The defender has missed competing for his country and has also not featured for Tottenham since the fledgling days of the new 2012-13 Premier League season.
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Spurs are slightly light at left-back after Danny Rose was sent out on loan to Sunderland for the campaign.
Jak Alnwick appears intent on staying at Rangers this summer and supporters are keen to have him around Ibrox, fighting for his place alongside new signing Allan McGregor and previously established number one Wes Foderingham.
Alnwick has been linked with a move away from the Light Blues over the last week, although The Scottish Sun most recently reported that a potential switch to Shrewsbury had fallen through.
The goalkeeper himself took to Twitter on Saturday to share his excitement at starting pre-season with the Gers, refuting the idea he will be leaving any time soon.
Supporters are keen for him to stay, especially after impressive form between the sticks in the latter parts of last season. With McGregor arriving, many expect Foderingham to be less than happy sitting on the bench, meaning there could be a role for the 24-year-old in Steven Gerrard’s squad.
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Fans took to Twitter to share their thoughts on it all…
According to reports in The Telegraph, Southampton are keen to complete a £30m deal to sign Spartak Moscow forward Quincy Promes before the January transfer window slams shut.
Saints turned their attentions to the Netherlands international after missing out to Everton in their bid to re-sign Theo Walcott, with the 26-year-old proving to be an influential figure during his time with the Russian outfit – he won the Russia Player of the Year award for 2017.
The south coast club currently lie in the bottom three after scoring 24 goals in 24 Premier League matches this season, and manager Mauricio Pellegrino will be determined to boost his attacking options before next Wednesday to boost his team’s survival chances.
Meanwhile, the Daily Mail reports that West Bromwich Albion are showing an interest in signing out of favour Borussia Dortmund attacker and former Chelsea star Andre Schurrle before January 31, with the Bundesliga giants ready to let him leave on loan this month.
The report adds that Dortmund are also willing to pay part of his current £140,000-a-week wages, and Pellegrino could be making a shrewd move by bringing him to St Mary’s.
Here are three reasons Southampton must forget Promes and sign Schurrle instead…
Experience
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While Quincy Promes looks to be an exciting potential addition on paper, he has never played in any of the top five leagues in European football and bringing him to St Mary’s would be a big £30m risk.
The same can’t be said for Schurrle, who has played in the Bundesliga for the majority of his career and has Premier League experience with Chelsea too, for whom he scored 14 goals in 65 games despite the majority of those outings coming from the substitutes’ bench.
The 27-year-old was also part of Germany’s World Cup winning squad in 2014 – providing the assist for Mario Gotze’s goal that saw his nation lift the famous trophy – and he has scored 22 goals in 57 caps for his country.
Point to prove
Schurrle will be frustrated that he has rarely been given a consistent run in the Borussia Dortmund side following his move from Wolfsburg in 2016, and he will have a big point to prove to his current employers if he leaves on loan before the end of the month.
The 27-year-old will also feel that he has unfinished business in the Premier League having encountered a similar scenario with Chelsea, and he also has the added motivation of trying to earn a place in the Germany squad for this summer’s World Cup.
All of those factors combined should see an attacker on a mission, and that would only be a good thing for Southampton if they brought him to St Mary’s.
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Lower risk element
Quincy Promes has a brilliant goalscoring record with Spartak Moscow but Southampton would need to smash their transfer record to sign the 26-year-old, and there is no doubt it would be a risky move considering the situation they find themselves in.
Bringing Schurrle – who has experience of playing in the Premier League and knows what the English game is all about – in on loan instead would certainly be a more sensible move financially, and it could be a deal that pays dividends in the short-term.
Before Manchester City hit the big-time in August 2008 and became one of Europe’s footballing super powers, they were on an even footing with the likes of West Ham.
A Capital One Cup Semi-Final meeting between these two sides about seven or eight years ago would have been a difficult one to call, with both sets of players evenly matched in almost every area of the pitch.
But that’s all changed since City fortunately became the oil-rich Abu Dhabi United Group’s new business venture in the Premier League.
Since that day in August 2008, City have had the pleasure of signing a number of Europe’s most sought after players for fees they could only dream of just years before.
And if you compare the amount of talent City manager Manuel Pellegrini has at his disposal compared to West Ham manager Sam Allardyce, there’s little to suggest that the Hammers have any chance of progressing to their first League Cup final since 1981.
When these sides met in the FA Cup quarter-finals in 2006, which the Hammers won 2-1 on their way to a historic final defeat on penalties to Liverpool, the market value of their squads were very similar.
According to www.transfermarkt.co.uk, Manchester City had a squad worth an estimated £75.5million that included the likes of an 18-year-old Georgios Samaras, a 23-year-old Joey Barton, a 17-year-old Micah Richards and 25-year-old Darius Vassell.
The Hammers had a similar looking squad, which was estimated at around £50.5million, and included Dean Ashton (22-years-old), Yossi Benayoun (25), Bobby Zamora (24) and Mark Noble (18).
But now it’s a completely different story all together. The Hammers are pretty much at exactly the same point as they were back in 2006 with an estimated market squad value of £84million.
But Manchester City have moved in to a completely different league all together, one that the Hammers can only dream of reaching.
City’s current crop of strikers are worth more than Sam Allardyce’s entire squad put together. Sergio Aguero (market value of £35million), Edin Dzeko (£24m), Alvaro Negredo (£22m) and Stevan Jovetic (£23milion) are arguably City’s main threats to any of their opponents over a course of a season. They are the firepower behind City’s impressive home form so far this season, so it’s little wonder why they are worthy so much money.
The value of the Hammers’ four front men do not even make up the value of Negredo alone. Andy Carroll (£14m), Modibo Maiga (£2.6m), Carlton Cole (£1.3m) and Mladen Petric (£1.8m).
And that is perhaps where this Capital One Cup Semi-Final will be decided. The first-leg at the Etihad Stadium could see the return of West Ham’s record signing Andy Carroll, but his much-needed contribution is not expected to outweigh that of the likes of Aguero and Negredo.
Aguero’s brace at Upton Park earlier this season proved to be the difference in their Premier League meeting, and he will be expected to do it all again in both legs to ensure City reach the Wembley final in February.
West Ham’s steady progress towards Premier League stability is exactly what City fans were expecting at the turn of the last decade. But as we edge closer to the half-way stage of the current decade, City fans are basking in the glory of being the favourites for almost everything and enjoying the company of some of the world’s best players week-in, week-out.
And that shouldn’t change in this Semi-Final with City possessing more than enough strength up front to brush aside the Hammers.
They say you don’t win a football match on paper but, on the pitch alone, City are showing more signs of success than the Hammers are at the moment.
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QPR chairman Tony Fernandes has stated that Mark Hughes is the right man for the manager’s job at the club, despite the team’s slow start to the season.
The Loftus Road outfit have went through a major squad revamp over the summer, but have picked up only two points from their first seven games.
Despite a 3-2 defeat to West Brom at the weekend, the R’s chief will not wield the axe to the Welsh boss.
“For all QPR fans. Fans who analyse properly. I am not changing anything. And all shareholders agree,” Fernandes revealed on Twitter.
“No team except the first game [a 5-0 home defeat to Swansea] has outplayed us. We need a consistent four defenders not changing every week especially right and left back. Mark is the right man.
“For all those calling for change, this is the team that outplayed Spurs and gave Chelsea a damm good game and you want change. No way,” he concluded.
Meanwhile, summer signing Esteban Granero has stated that the players are to blame for the club’s poor form, not Hughes.
“We’re the ones who have to improve because the manager is great,” the Spaniard is quoted as saying in The Sun.
“We all support the manager. We know he’s the best manager we can possibly have. Most of the losses, for sure, are not his fault. It is our fault — the footballers’ fault,” he concluded.
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Tottenham fans have been enjoying the latest comments from Mauricio Pochettino, after the Spurs boss hinted he would like to bring Lionel Messi to North London.
Pochettino has been forced to deal with rumours about his exit since Zinedine Zidane left Real Madrid last week, with some reports even suggesting he has a “Real Madrid clause” in his new contract.
It is now confirmed there is no such clause in the contract though, which is set to keep him at the club until 2023, and the charismatic boss has put himself even further in fans’ good books with his latest comments.
Pochettino was once again quizzed about a potential exit, asked if he would one day coach Messi with Newell’s Old Boys.
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“No, I would like to persuade him to come to pass through Tottenham first before he goes to Newell’s Old Boys,” the 46 year-old responded.
Both men got their careers started with the historic Argentinian club, but the thought of the pair linking up in North London first is certainly an enjoyable one.
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The comments were of course tongue in cheek, and fans are enjoying some jokes about a possible deal for the Barcelona superstar, while also heaping praise on their manager.
You can find some of the best Twitter reactions down below…
Liverpool are weighing up a move for Real Madrid midfielder James Rodriguez, according to Don Balon.
What’s the story?
The Colombian international is currently on a two-year loan at Bayern Munich after dropping down the pecking order at Real Madrid.
The 26-year-old earned himself a transfer to the Bernabeu in 2014 following his scintillating display at the World Cup.
However, he has struggled to hold down a regular spot in the team, which led to his temporary departure.
At Bayern this season, Rodriguez has made 20 appearances in all competitions, scoring three goals and creating five assists.
According to Don Balon, Liverpool are interested in making a move for the Colombian, but a deal could be tricky due to the player’s current loan agreement at Bayern.
Is Rodriguez the right man for the Reds?
There is a Philippe Coutinho-shaped hole left in Liverpool’s team and the Merseyside outfit have the funds to find a replacement.
Rodriguez certainly has the ability to shine at Anfield, but due to his lack of regular game time, there is a question mark over his head.
A major positive is that the Colombian has versatility and can play in a variety of attacking positions.
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He can perform up front, on the left side of attack, or deeper in midfield, which is where he could be positioned to provide balls for Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino.
Manager Jurgen Klopp has proven that he can get the best out of players in an attacking sense, so it may be worth Liverpool taking a slight risk with Rodriguez.
Fulham secured a crucial three points at Craven Cottage on Sunday afternoon with a 2-0 win against Aston Villa, with Steve Sidwell and Dimitar Berbatov providing the finishes, for what could be a really important victory for the West Londoners.
Rene Meulensteen claimed his first victory since becoming Fulham boss and will see this result as a welcome bonus. In their previous outing, at home against Tottenham, they provided an admirable performance with no end product to show for their efforts but they were ruthless her, in their search for only their second home victory in the Premier League this campaign.
In the first half there was a renewed vigour and application, compared to their performances under Martin Jol, from Fulham and when Steve Sidwell managed to strike home from a difficult angle on 21 minutes he set the Cottagers well on their way.
Berbatov knocked the ball down to Dejagah and he slipped a first-time ball through to Sidwell, who made no mistake with the finish, despite being hauled down by Bacuna for his troubles.
The visitors tried to respond through Christian Benteke, who was back in the side, following his demotion to the bench, midweek against Southampton, but to no avail.
Fulham provided a sucker punch only nine minutes later as the superb Dimitar Berbatov slotted home a penalty on 30 minutes.
Kacaniklic went down contentiously from a challenge from Bacuna as he looked to be heading away from goal, but the Bulgarian maestro made no mistake from the resulting spot kick.
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Berbatov had a real steadying influence on his side for the rest of the game. Riise hit the outside of the post and could have put the game beyond doubt, whilst Agbonlahor had a penalty claim denied by Mike Dean, which could have provided a nervy finish.
Fulham are within touching distance of safety as only goal difference separates them from West Ham above them outside the relegation zone.